[Sca-cooks] Sausage recipes

[a5foil]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Barbara Benson" <voxeight at gmail.com>
To: "Cooks within the SCA" <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
Sent: Saturday, January 22, 2005 11:07 AM
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Sausage recipes


(snip)
> Now, here is a question. In the recipe it calls for 4 lbs pork, 4 lbs
> beef, 2 lbs pork fat and 1 quart of water.
>
> What is the purpose of the water?

Aside from adding moisture, water or other liquid in sausage also serves the
mechanical function of distributing salt (in particular) and other
flavorings throughout the meat more efficiently than if the dry spices are
just sprinkled on the meat. If you want to test this yourself, take a
teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of pepper per pound of ground pork, and
sprinkle it directly on the meat and mix it in (this is a recipe for
butifarra crua). Try the same recipe, but add a quarter cup of water per
pound of ground pork, dissolve the salt in the water, and soak the pepper in
the water for about 10 minutes before working the water and seasonings into
the meat.

Wet sausage is easier to stuff, too. About 30 minutes after salt is added to
the meat, it starts to set. A sausage with added liquid is easier to work,
longer after the salt is added.

- Thomas Longshanks